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Friday 22 November 2019 18:43, UK
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer insists he is not bothered by Mauricio Pochettino’s availability following his sacking by Tottenham.
When Solskjaer took caretaker charge of United last December, Pochettino was favourite for the job, before the Norwegian's impressive run of results earned him the permanent role.
But with Pochettino no longer in a job after being "relieved of his duties" by Spurs on Tuesday, speculation about a potential move to Old Trafford has intensified.
"It doesn't bother me at all. I've got the best job in the world," said Solskjaer ahead of Sunday's trip to Sheffield United, live on Sky Sports.
"If you're in a job, or if you're out of a job and you're a manager, you want this job. It doesn't really matter whatever happens around. I've got to focus on my job at Manchester United and do it as well as I can.
"I speak with Ed Woodward and the owners all the time about how we're going to move the club forward. That doesn't change if some other clubs change their managers."
Spurs appointed former United manager Jose Mourinho on Wednesday, less than 12 hours after sacking Pochettino.
United midfielder Nemanja Matic, who has been signed by Mourinho twice in his career, liked and commented on an Instagram post suggesting he was waiting for the Portuguese to bring him to Spurs in January.
"When it's like this, you like Jose coming back," added Solskjaer. "It's going to be a spectacle and a circus and Nemanja has a sense of humour."
Paul Pogba, the France international midfielder, will not be back for Sunday's trip to Bramall Lane, says Solskjaer.
Pogba has been out injured since September with an ankle problem and Solskjaer had previously said this weekend's Premier League game would be the earliest he could return.
"He had another test and a scan at the start of the international break and he's not healed yet," said Solskjaer.
"But he's stepping up his recovery and he's out of a cast so he doesn't have to have a cast on. He was in one for six or seven weeks.
"You do lose loads of muscle so he's gradually now just stepping up walking on the treadmill, biking with a free ankle. It will still be a few weeks yeah. We hope to see him in 2019."
Fred is United's only senior midfielder available for Sunday. Along with Pogba, Solskjaer says Matic and Scott McTominay are weeks away from a return.
It highlights a lack of depth in Solskjaer's squad with James Garner and Angel Gomes - both teenage academy graduates - his only recognised options in the centre of midfield.
"That's going to take its toll for any midfield - if you take three midfielders out of any top club I think they will struggle," said Solskjaer.
"But Fred has stepped up and we will just have to try and conjure up a way of replacing them.
"Long term we are looking at different positions and we have been looking at midfielders."
Asked if there is a specific type of midfielder United want, he added: "There's always types of players we are looking at but I'm not going to sit here and talk about that now."
Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Ince says that Mauricio Pochettino becoming available changes the dynamics of the situation at Manchester United.
"When you look at the start of (Ole Gunnar) Solskjaer's reign when he first took over as interim manager, it went so well that he got the job on a permanent basis so quickly," Ince told Sky Sports News.
"I personally thought it was too quickly and they should have waited until the end of the season. I was one of those people clamouring for Mauricio Pochettino to get the job.
"But now Ole's got the job permanently, the board have a decision to make. They know Pochettino's available.
"Under Ole, it's been inconsistent but he's building something. He's got a project that might last three or four years to challenge the likes of Liverpool and (Manchester) City.
"But the dynamics change when a manager like Pochettino becomes available. All it takes is one or two freak results and you're going to get people saying that Pochettino's available.
"That won't bother Ole, I think he knows where he is and he's come out before and said he's got the backing of the board.
"He'll be wary of it but I don't think it'll affect his psyche and how he goes about his job at Manchester United."
